8 months old!!

She's my little bundle of joy alright! =) xoxox

Jessie, this one's for YOU!

Alright girl, this is months old but I'm just now getting to it haha.

I took my first trip down to Itaewon without you *tear!* to go get a dress for the MP Ball, which I did and it was fabulous!! But I totally wished you were there with me. Would've been so much better. So, because I was missing you, I photo journaled my way through the day. =)



There I am (see the red "you are here" spot? Ha! Just noticed the arrow inside of that pointing to my reflection. I'm a much deeper photo journalist than I realized....) 6 stops away from where my Jessie used to live. *sigh*...

Something's missing from this picture........Oh yeah, IT'S YOU and your smiling face coming around the corner to meet me. I didn't get a hug right here. Sad. =(

Yeah, you know where I went for lunch! Ali Baba all the way! =) That's your seat. I saved it for you...

Mmmmm falafel sandwich. Y.U.M. I am forever grateful to you for introducing me to such deliciousness.

Aaaaaand of course I had to end my *almost* perfect day at Caffe Bene with a waffle and gelato. Again, you have my heart for bringing me there too. =)

Just want you to know you were one of my favorite parts of Korea. I miss you and love you woman!

xoxox

<3 <3 <3 (all our love, from the three of us.) And Bestie sends an extra slobbery kiss. ;)

7 months!!

There's my growing up girl, with Jeffrey and Pandora. She's eaten (and loved) rice cereal, oatmeal cereal, chicken, turkey, ham, beef and squash!! (Just started on veggies this week =) She's low crawling all over the house, no longer content to stay within the safety of her room. She's also been rocking back and forth on her hands and knees for some time now. The real crawling is about to begin!! And now, Mommy's going to bed early for once. =) xoxox

HAPPY HALF BIRTHDAY!!!

Guess who's 6 months old today?!?!

At the Dr.'s we found out she is now 26.14" tall, weighs 20.46 lbs. and has a head circumfrence of 16.81"! (In other words, she's a little fatty-mcfat-fat. Heehee. But the Dr. said don't worry or change anything yet. We'll just watch her stats for a while and see if things even out, and if not, then we'll make some adjustments to her eating habits.)

While we were there she had to get her third round of vaccinations, along with her first flu shot - which we'll have to repeat in 4 weeks since this is her first time ever receiving it. So, she had to get 4 shots, 2 in each leg. SHE DIDN'T EVEN CRY when she got the first one...just glared at the tech. and sucked harder on her sucker. But then she let loose on the other three. Poor thing. She was so brave though! I know females my age that still cry at shots - my 6 month old can beat your 20-something at taking shots! HA! =)

And even more exciting than that!!? She signed to me for the first time today!!! We've been signing to her various things for about a month now. They say it usually takes 2 months or so to catch on and babies don't usually start signing until 7-8 months. What do they know!

She was sitting in her high chair keeping me company while I was having dinner, and she started signing. (It turned out to be the sign for "milk", but she was looking at her fingers in frustration, like she couldn't get them to do what she wanted them to. To her credit, "milk" is sort of similar to "diaper", and "diaper" is a pretty hard sign for fingers without much individual deterity to them yet.) So I picked her up to put her in her playpen, but was a little baffled about her signing, since she'd just finished nursing and eating - milk and rice cereal!!! (Yes, we hit that milestone and I didn't blog about it. Very busy here these days, sorry. =) Low and behold, what do I see all over her back but a big blow-out poop!! Usually I'm a little bummed when I see one of those, but then it hit me what she was trying to sign and I was never so excited to change a diaper! =) When I set her down on the changing table she started signing some more, looking at her fingers in frustration again. So I signed back the sign for diaper and her face just light up. I was beaming.

My baby girl told me something today. How cool is that... xoxox

WFKAAGGCO! (for my sisters)

So, while I was not officially invited to the Women Formerly Known As A Gale Girl's Clean-Off, (see Laura and Emily's posts to better understand what the heck I'm talking about... =) I do believe I may have been the one to technically start it, as my first endeavors began at the begining of the month. I didn't realize we were documenting our progress, however, so some things will only have the "after" shots. (It's just like one of my sisters to change the rules as we go....not naming names or anything...but YOU know who you are! HA! Also, does being left out of your games because I'm the youngest have to last for forever?!! Heehee. ;)

Here's what I'M working on...

First, I finally organized and put all of my jewelry away!! Either in a few small jewelry boxes, or in the amazing musical Korean one that Joe got me for my birthday. (Yes, it took me 4 months before I actually did something with it other than just stare in awe. And yes, it's about time for me to be packing everything up instead of taking it out of a moving box and putting it in a jewelry box, but ahhhh well. Nobody's perfect. =) (I don't know why the first picture won't turn the right way...sorry.)

Then, I organized our little closet shelves and counter. (Jewelry boxes on shelves are the ones aforementioned.) I am actually glad I didn't take a before picture of the counter. While I would've been hearing a chorus of "Oooooh"'s and "Ahhhhhh"'s right about now, the shame of what the catch-all looked like before might not have been worth it. ;) It was so bad Joe actually asked if I was gonna do something with it, which is my tell-tale sign that things are way out of control, because rarely does he mention such things. (Note: that's not an actual jar of mayo on the top shelf, just a cleaned out one being used as a storage container. I do NOT have mayo to snack on in my closet. Just sayin.)

Today he also asked about the dust bunnies though, and so I knew it was past time to do something about them as well. They've been on my to-do list for a while now, but somehow other things seem more pressing. Something that is sure to change once Kathy starts crawling, but I'm still in the clear for that as of yet. =)

(I had the courage to post the actual filthy end result of my floor duster after having just re-read "The Disease Called 'Perfection'" found at www.danoah.com/2010/09/disease-called-perfection.html . This is me, being real.)

I organized all of our important documents and paperwork that I need to hand-carry with me during the move. This folder has been out of control and the bane of my existance for just about the entire time we've been here, so I was THRILLED to have finally gotten the self-discipline to just get it done! (Don't know why this pic wouldn't turn the right way either...)

I made a Moving Organizer like I read about on numerous websites giving tips on moving. This was a really fun project and one that seemed like it could be considered stalling to some people by me taking time creating it instead of just doing what needed to be done. However, I am a huge list person and seeing everything I need to do listed out that I can check off, as well as writing it down on monthly calendars to pace myself has been instrumental in my actually accomplishing these tasks! I am a procrastinator no more!! (Or at least, I am a very organized one who can now get back on track fairly quickly by utilizing her cute little binder. ;)

I am in the middle of making a detailed list of all of our high value items - name, model, serial no, date aquired, cost - along with taking pictures of said items, in case of loss or damage during the move. (This, along with organizing all of our important documents was also something I should've completed for NEO - NonCombatant Evacuation and Repatriation Operations - as soon as I arrived in Korea, but hadn't. So, glad that's almost done as well. Better late than never, right?! =)

I organized and put away all of my maternity clothes into one suitcase. I have two suitcases that I organized with clothes I either don't need anymore while we're here (dressy clothes, for instance - great idea, Laura!) or are still too small for me since being pregnant. The others still need to be sorted and either kept or donated (the yellow bag is all I have for donations so far. Haha.). I've mostly gone through my closet and dresser, but now I need to start focusing on what to take home with me, verses what to send to Seattle early in our Unaccompanied Baggage, verses what can wait until the rest of our stuff gets there in our Household Goods....A week's worth of work in and of itself, at least.

I'm going to be honest here. Painfully, embarassingly honest. Real. These are mostly boxes that we never unpacked while we were here. Some I opened and realized we just didn't have room for the contents, or a proper way to display it - lots of pictures to hang on the walls, but we have concrete walls, so that's out. I am hoping to sort through all of these before we move as well. No sense taking things we haven't needed in over two years to collect dust in another storage closet! But I'll be okay with myself if that doesn't get done. They're already in boxes, so worst case scenario I'll just do it once we get to Seattle. No biggie. =)

Dumped out a box of misc. stuff that was half paperwork on the guest bed and need to finish sorting through that.

I sorted all of Kathy's baby clothes by size and also have stuff ready to send off to Laura as well...just waiting to hear whether or not I should be including lots of frilly pink things!!! =)

Last but not least, I went through the bottom shelf of one of our bookshelves and sorted and organized everything there. Found lots of college creative writing papers I'd aced and kept, so they were really fun and refreshing to read. Makes me excited about becoming a writer someday in the near-ish future! =)

Aaaaaand I think that's it. Glad I have the camaraderie of my sisters hard at work organizing their homes while I continue to work on mine! =) Though I do miss having you in the same room with me while sorting things. It's always easier to throw something out when you have others supporting you in that decision. ;)

Pretty sure this is the most recent picture I have of the three of us together - looking forward to taking more over Christmas!!

I love you both. xoxox

Coming Home

Just wanted to let you all know that, at Joe's suggestion, Kathy and I will be flying home early to mid November so we can get extra time with family and friends while he does all the dirty work of moving back to the states. (Yes, you're right. I DO have an amazingly sweet and thoughtful husband! =) Joe will fly home as soon as he's done working and wrapping up all the loose ends, which should probably be mid to late December, but hopefully definitely before Christmas. We'll be staying in MD at Mom and Dad's for about a month I think, and then we'll be taking a road trip across the states to our new duty station at Ft. Lewis, WA. (Just a side note, I have approval to fly solo so there should be no problem with that, and as of this post we are "projected" to be stationed at Ft. Lewis but don't have orders yet, so technically that's not final, but it basically is. =) Now not to be a Debbie Downer, but I just wanted to make it clear so we're all on the same page here. If you want to see us, you're going to have to come to us. We're choosing to take leave in between duty stations to come home and see everyone, so don't get the wrong idea - we do really want to see you and spend time with you - but we're not driving up and down the east coast to visit you. We're flying in from across the globe...you gotta meet us half-way here. ;) See you in Maryland!! xoxox

5 months!!!

At her Dr.'s apt. we found out she is now 19.84 lbs., 25.9 in. tall, and has a head circumference of 16.73 in! My girl has more than doubled in size since she was born!! She's huge! And I love every little inch. =)

Also, she got shots and a live vaccine while we were there and she was SO brave! One big cry out for each shot and then she had composed herself to all but a whimper before I could even pick her up to comfort her! And then she got a fever the next day. Poor little bit... =( 100.6 was the highest it got that we know of, but she was just like her daddy - not feeling well but still smiley and fun every now and then. She was really tired and slept most of the day, but that's to be expected. Babied her a bit more than usual to make up for her feeling icky.


Found this poem that I fell in love with on a website listed on one of my friend's websites. Have no idea who wrote it but just know I unfortunately can't take credit for it. =)

I Love You

I am your parent, you are my child.
I am your quiet place, you are my wild.
I am your calm face, you are my giggle.
I am your wait, you are my wiggle.
I am your dinner, you are my chocolate cake.
I am your bedtime, you are my wide awake.
I am your lullaby, you are my peekaboo.
I am your goodnight kiss, you are my I love you.

xoxox

Local News

http://poleshift.ning.com/profiles/blogs/s-korea-landslide-kills-18

Sooo this is what's happening where we are...what's new with you?

We're fine so far, thank God. Our streets don't look like that - at least I don't think so, but I haven't been out in a while. =) For those of you who don't remember, we live in Uijeongbu, where the 3rd worst flooding is right now. Camp Casey, which is 1 hr. north of us, has closed almost all their gates to incoming traffic because of the flooding there. So for those soldiers who live off base, they get the day off - except of course, MP's. So here's to hoping it doesn't get that bad here...too bad for anyone to drive on, except Joe will have to. Love it...

I do really love rain and thunderstorms though, so my spirits are high! =) Just really sucks for everyone this is so severely negatively affecting...

xoxox

HEAR YE! HEAR YE!

The littlest girl has something to tell you... =)

Rolie Polie Olie!!!

She's 4 months old!!

A little more slouchy than last month, but it was right before bedtime. And Panda isn't looking at the camera but what can you expect with such little ones? =) xoxox

Triumph! Victory! Success!

Yes people, I've done it and I'm not ashamed to admit it. I finally fit into a pair of pre-pregnancy jeans today!!! Hallelujah! Joe was out when I called him and told him we needed to celebrate. So you know what he brings home?!?!!

Yep, that's right, a dozen of these bad boys. Heaven help me. =) I do think you all should go out and get yourself some Krispy Kremes to celebrate with me though. Just sayin... =) xoxox

Superstar!

So I have to brag on my Joe a bit... Last week he shot an AFN (Armed Forces Network) TV commercial!! It's a short little thing, but it's got my sweetheart in it and I'm so proud. Now not only is he talk, dark, handsome and mine, he's also a TV star! Hahaha. Enjoy! =) xoxox

My Chatty Kathy

It's Summertime!

Summertime summertime sum sum summertime! Summertime summertime sum sum summertime! Summertime summertime sum sum summertime! Summertiiiiiiiiiiime!


Just thought you'd like to enjoy my tropical view... =)

Also, looking for a great Tuna Pasta Salad recipe for summer?? I know that's kind of random, but I've got one and it's AMAZING so I had to share. It comes from Taste of Home's Dinner on a Dime cookbook that I got from my sister Emily for Christmas 2 years ago. Here you go!

Tuna Pasta Salad
1 package (7 oz.) small pasta shells, cooked and drained
1 can (6 oz.) tuna, drained and flaked
1 large carrot, shredded
1/4 cup chopped onion
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup milk
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. prepared mustard
1 tsp. dill weed
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper

In a large salad bowl, combine the pasta, tuna, carrot and onion. Combine remaining ingredients; whisk until smooth. Pour over pasta mixture; toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
Yield: 4 servings.


Side notes: I usually use 2 cans of tuna instead of just one. I also hate raw onions, but Joe loves them, so I chop them up and just add them to his plate each time. And instead of dill weed, I use Willy Nilly Dilly. So TWF, go for that - it's soooo good! Joe says it's the bomb diggity. =)

xoxox

BEST. PRESENT. EVER.

Happy Father's Day!!

xoxox

3 months!!!

She's growing up so fast... =)

And man, is she on the move!! I placed her in the middle of her playmat, straight up and down, and let her play by herself for a while. After a little while she starts to fuss, so I come over to see what the matter is. And this is what I found!!

She'd scooted her little self sideways and off the mat! Silly little girl...

Also, every morning I find her in a different place in her crib from where I placed her the night before. (And no, Joe is not playing tricks on me. ;) I'll usually put her at the top of her mattress with a couple inches to spare between her head and the headboard. The other morning I came in and found her in the bottom left corner with her legs pulled up and her butt touching the footboard! Then the next morning I found her turned completely sideways and in the middle of her crib. Can't leave this one and expect her to be where I left her anymore!

She's great with tummy time now too. She holds that little head up the whole time, doesn't fuss about it anymore, and kicks and kicks and kicks those little legs. She even scooted a few inches the other day! She's gonna be crawling before we know it...xoxox

Guess who's two?!

Months, that is. =)

We took Kathy in for her two month check-up and she passed with flying colors. All the nurses and Dr.'s commented about "all that hair". That's our girl! She weighed in at a whopping 13.2 lbs. (99 percentile for her age group) and measured 24.6 inches (100 percentile for her age group). She also had so get two shots while we were there, one in each thigh poor little thing. She cried a good one at first but was quickly and easily comforted by Mommy (made me feel great - Ha! =). I really was very proud of her though - she was so brave. My little girl isn't so little anymore! But she still is, I know. Everything is relative.

Speaking of relatives..........

We had a wonderful time having Grandma and Granddad and then Grammy visit over the past 3 months! It was soooo nice to have so much help and support during the very beginings of parenthood. I understand what a huge commitment of time and money it was for them, and I want to be clear how much we appreciated them coming all this way to love us and our little girl.

Though admittedly, there was a collective sigh of relief when we got home from the airport for the last time, walked through the doors of our house and realized it was just us - just the three of us - for the rest of our time here in Korea. ;) The company was good while it lasted, and I'm so very very thankful for it, but it's good to learn how to be our own little family now too. =)

Kathy is a very happy, easy going baby girl with lots and lots of smiles, coos and squeals for Mommy and Daddy. She wants to giggle sooooooo badly but hasn't quite figured out how just yet. She has the biggest, brightest eyes that shine with delight when carrying on a conversation with one of us. She is a kick-and-wiggle machine and has almost discovered that her hands are hers, although she has learned how to use them to bat at and hold onto the toys on her play mat. She loves to listen to music and be read to and sung to as well. She is just as much of a cuddle-bug as her Mommy is, which is just SO wonderful, I might add. =) I am so thankful for our precious little girl!!!! xoxox

Brand New Life

It's the same old thing, but it's brand new. It's happened over and over, but this is the first time it's ever happened. Children have been born every day since the beginning of time, but this is the first one born to me in my time.

It's not a routine thing that I just did by giving birth. It's not normal to suddenly be sharing our home with a baby. There is nothing ordinary about this complete change of schedule. My way of thinking about space, God, myself, and love is forever changed.

It's my brand new life and I love it.

Thank you, God, for the freshness you give to me in the ageless event.

"He put a new song in my mouth." ~ Psalm 40:3

(Taken from: Meditations for New Moms, by Sandra Drescher-Lehman. Given to me by MY Mom. =)

xoxox

She's growing up so fast!

Guess who's one month old today?!?! =)

Decisions, decisions...

Do I shower, eat, nap or cuddle my baby while she sleeps? What about a walk outside, or maybe read the emails that are piling up? (let alone replying to them...) Or should I do a little catching up on Facebook? How about a video chat with family back in the states? And I still have tons of pictures that need to be posted of this precious new addition to our family... Thank God Mom is here to do the cooking and cleaning and help with the baby. I am so blessed (spoiled) to have such support and my Mommy here to care for me while I learn to be a Mommy and care for my little girl...Seems like most days I opt for some combination of the first four options in between feedings and leave everything else for another time. But another time never seems to come...maybe next year. Haha! =)

Still recovering from childbirth/surgery. It's taking longer than I thought it would, and supposedly I'm only half-way there. Patience is apparently a virtue but personally, I think it's overrated. Again, so glad to have Mom here. I'm seriously not looking forward to having to do everything on my own, but I know by the time Mom and Dad and Mama Lisa leave I should be pretty close to completely healed (I HOPE!!) so maybe it won't be as bad as I'm picturing it to be...

The lesson I am (still) in the middle of learning is to take this one step at a time. While pregnant, I was learning to take it one week at a time - staying in awe of what was happening to me and my baby instead of just yearning for her arrival and therefore missing out on the beauty of the moment I was in. Before going into labor, I was learning to take it one day at a time, as I waited for my (late!) baby girl to come out and play. During labor, I was learning to take it one contraction at a time - to focus on what was happening in the moment, be it hard work or relaxation - and not dwelling on the pain of the past or dreading the pain of the future. During these first few weeks of motherhood I am learning to take it one feeding, one nap, one day at a time - soreness, exhaustion and emotional unstability seem to have combined into the perfect storm. Once again, thank God for Mom, who is taking the midnight feedings from me so I can now get a good 6 hours of sleep per night!! It's AMAZING what a little extra sleep can do for one's physical and emotional wellbeing...who knew?? ;)

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. And thank you, thank you, Lord, for this beautiful, precious baby girl you have blessed me with. She is such a treasured gift and I cherish her immensely... xoxox

And baby makes 3!!! =)

Well folks, WE DID IT!!! After 19 hours and 45 minutes of labor, we have the most perfectly beautiful little gift from God to show for all our efforts. I would love to recount all the details for you, but it still seems quite a blur to me, so you'll have to talk to Mom or Joe to get the full story. =)

Speaking of Mom and Joe, let me just sing their praises for a moment. Mom was amazing for even coming over here to help out in the first place. She committed to staying with us for 2 whole months to be here before the birth, at the birth, and to help out afterwards. What an angel. Mom was a great buddy beforehand, going on walks with me and keeping me company, helping me to work through the final realizations that we were about to have a baby, and she was a great help during labor as well. She was right there when I needed her with a cold drink, a little snack, a cool wash cloth, an arm to lean on while walking to the bathroom, a reasuring prayer, and whatever else I needed. And since our baby girl has been born, she's kicked up her game even more! She's makes all the meals, cleans the house, does the laundry, takes turns with Joe for who gets up with me in the middle of the night to change diapers and help with feedings...what a God-send. I am so thankful she was willing and able to come stay with us, and that Dad was willing and able to let her go for that long. (Can't wait to see him for his visit next month!! =)

And Joe...Joe was, is, and forever will be my hero. He was such an amazing support to me emotionally, mentally and physically. He helped me breathe through all my contractions, he calmed me when I started to feel overwhelmed, he let me lean on him in all kinds of awkward positions to lessen my pain, he gave me pep talks and encouraged me to push my limits, he fed me ice chips, helped me to the bathroom, and worked through all the hard decisions with me that we had to make along the way, just to name a few examples. Basically, he was the most perfect coach anyone could've asked for and I am forever grateful to have had his undying support when I needed it most. And that was just during labor!

I had to have surgery afterwards, and we stayed in the hospital almost a week while I and our baby recovered. I was told by all the nurses that my husband was one in a million, that in all the time they've worked there they've never seen a husband more involved or attentive to his wife. He took over all the responisbilities of the nurses when it came to me, helping with dressings and all the yucky stuff no husband should have to do. And on top of that he took complete care of our baby girl too, because I barely had the strength to make it to the bathroom while holding onto him, let alone stand up to walk her or change her diaper. I didn't change a single diaper until we were home from the hospital, people! He did all of that and walked her and calmed her when she was fussy and gasy in the middle of the night so I could get some rest. I am the luckiest woman in the world to have him as my husband, and I am so excited to have made a family with him!

Now, long story short, Kathleen (Kathy) Marie, was born on Saturday, 12 March 2011 at 7:32 pm. She was 9 lbs. 12 oz. and 21 1/4 inches. She has super soft black hair, and the most beautiful, bright, big brown eyes I've ever seen. She is such a good, sweet little baby who loves to snuggle and we are so in love with her. What a dream come true!! xoxox

FYI

Went to our 41st week appointment today and found out I am about 1 cm dialated. We had to schedule an induction for Monday in case I haven't given birth by then. After our apt. our doula, Tonya, worked with me doing lots of walking and different exercises like squats, lunges, etc. for about 3 hours to try and get labor started and the baby moving down farther. Had a lot of good contractions during our time together, but after going back to the Stork's Nest to rest, they've stopped.

Tomorrow we are scheduled to have a NST and an AFI, and we will also let the Dr.'s do some natural-ish interventions to see if we can't convince our little one to come out and play. (I'll spare you the details, Biffy. =) We will continue to get them done Thurs. and Fri. as well, in hopes that we will not need to keep our induction apt. for Mon. after all!

We were already planning on staying at the Stork's Nest tonight and working with Tonya again tomorrow, but now that we have apts. for the rest of the week, Mom and I will be staying down here until our baby girl is born. (Glad she's here so I have a buddy! =) Joe has to go back to work Thurs. - Sun. but will obviously be called down if/when things start progressing.

The only internet access we have is at the library and obviously we can't do video chats there, so we won't be online until after the baby is born. If you'd like to get ahold of us, feel free to call my cell. (I know I gave it to all of you but if you lost it call Dad. =) Not sure how much emailing we'll be doing either, so calling really is the best way if you need us. (Remember, we're 14 hours ahead of EST, until daylight savings comes since South Korea doesn't observe that. Then we'll only be 13 hours ahead.) Once we go into labor we'll call you, so don't worry that you're gonna miss it. =)

Time's running out since I'm on a library computer but that's all the info. anyways. We appreciate all of your prayers during this time that we will have wisdom in the decisions we have to make, that our baby girl will be born in God's time and His way, and that we will find peace in that during this whole process.

Next post should include pictures of our baby girl!!! =) xoxox

Does your belly hang low? Does it wobble to and fro?

Because mine does!!!! =) Hahaha...Joe is having fun taking pictures of me in all the crazy positions he finds me in - it's just what feels comfortable at the time! =)

Still no baby but I've been seeing signs of prelabor for about 2 weeks now. Also little signs of progression here and there but I'll spare you the details (you're welcome, Biffy =). They all make me happy to know that every day we're one step closer to meeting our little girl! xoxox